No welcome mat for Barry

One of the things we love about Ozzie Guillen -- apart from that little trinket he brought back to Armour Square a few years ago -- is his willingness to honestly answer any question put to him ...

On Friday, Ozzie addressed the subject of whether the Sox would pursue the currently unemployed Barry Bonds should Jim Thome go down with an injury. The short answer is: Not in this lifetime ...

After saying a couple of times "Barry can't play for my club," Ozzie apparently tries to soften the message a bit by calling Bonds "to me, the best in the history of baseball, no matter what" ...

Uh, not so much ...

The best player in baseball history -- and no one else is in the same ballpark, so to speak -- was a guy who batted .342 with 714 homers, a .690 slugging percentage and a 1.164 OPS (those last two are major league records). Oh, and he was also 94-46 as a pitcher with a 2.28 ERA. You might have heard of him: George Herman Ruth Jr. ...

After the Babe, you could make a pretty good case for Willie Mays, for his combination of power, speed and defense, or Ted Williams. Who knows what kind of numbers Teddy Ballgame could have put up had he not missed three full seasons serving in World War II, as well as most of two more for a second military stint during the Korean War?

So Barry's not the best of all time and he's not the best fit for the Sox. What is he? Some -- OK, many -- would say he's the worst thing to happen to the game since the Black Sox scandal. To me, Bonds' story is less a national (pastime) tragedy -- the game will survive, it always has -- than a personal one ...

Because if what we all suspect is true -- that he built his legacy on a foundation of chemical enhancement -- Bonds is facing a lot bigger problems down the road than being unable to find a DH gig in the American League. Nine years ago, I talked to a former minor leaguer who used anabolic steroids. You can see for yourself what they did for his career -- and his life ...

Is the price Bonds paid for his success worth it? Only he can answer that question ...